Chapter 79 - Fever Pitch
Although the Hogsmeade visit was long over, Harry’s presence was very real to Ginny. She couldn’t believe she’d fallen asleep on him. He had left a sweet note, asking her to patch things up with Hermione and that he would do the same. Now, more than ever, Hermione would need their help. Harry stated, and Ginny agreed, that nothing good could come of this alliance between Hermione and Draco.
After their last parting, Ginny had been very surprised that Harry had been able to leave without waking her up. But the more she thought about it, the more she realised they were becoming rather inseparable. It was probably best, for her, not Harry, to be the only one to feel the immediacy of their parting.
She tried to find Hermione on a few occasions over the following days, but in-and-out of class, Hermione was relentless. She didn’t spare a moment on Ginny, no matter how many times she had tried to corner her, but every time she got close, Draco would appear or the Quidditch team would be dragging her in the opposite direction.
Much to Ginny’s chagrin, she wasn’t able to talk to Hermione through much of February and an oncoming Quidditch match made it near impossible to talk to her. The match was to be between Gryffindor and Hufflepuff, but Ginny didn’t know if she would be ready to play or not.
On her way to practice, Ginny saw Hermione and Draco huddled near the entrance, a ream of parchment spread between the two of them. She hurried over, trying to beat them from noticing her. Hermione didn’t look up, but Draco turned at hearing her footsteps. His expression was blank, but Ginny was eyeing them both warily.
She and Draco stared at one another for a few moments before Hermione finally said, ‘I think this is all wrong…’
Her voice trailed off as she noticed that Ginny had joined them. They locked eyes for a moment before Hermione nudged Draco, bringing his attention back to her. Ginny was seething. She strode around Draco and faced Hermione. ‘What is the matter with you? You’ve been avoiding me since Hogsmeade!’
Hermione gave her a curious look. ‘I haven’t, you’ve been busy.’
‘That is a bloody lie and you know it! It’s almost been a month and you’re still carrying on as if Malfoy has all the answers!’ Ginny fumed.
Draco smirked at her. ‘I know more than you and your precious Potter.’
Ginny grabbed the parchment clean out of their hands, but it only had notes and a diagram of a room Ginny had never seen. Hermione crossed her arms. ‘Are you finished? Malfoy and I have work to do…and you have a match to prepare for.’
Ginny shook her head. ‘Hermione…’ She grabbed the older girls arm, pulling her away from Draco. She waved her hand in front of Hermione’s face, but she just arched an eyebrow at her. ‘Are you in there? You worry about me with Harry, but you’ve gone all puppy-dog after Malfoy…’
Hermione pulled her arm slowly out of Ginny’s grasp. ‘Ginny, we’re still friends. But this is really important to me, and it isn’t to you, and that’s okay. If this is nothing, like you and Harry think, that’s fine, but if it is something, then we’ll cross that bridge another time…but I don’t want you wasting your time on something you don’t believe in.’
Ginny could feel her heart hammering and responded shakily, ‘I do believe in you. What lies has he told you to make you think you’re not my friend?’
‘None,’ Hermione replied blandly, taking the parchment out of Ginny’s hands. ‘Look, Ginny, we have work to do…so, good luck on the match.’
Hermione turned and walked away, dragging Draco to another location. Ginny felt a strange foreboding fall over her and said quietly, ‘You are important to me…’
A poke in her back made her jump. Natalie was standing behind her. ‘That was…’ She shook her head, smiling. ‘That Malfoy character has done a number on her, hasn’t he? Does your brother know?’
Ginny narrowed her eyes, watching Hermione and Draco. ‘No, but I think I might tell him.’
Natalie pulled on Ginny’s arm. ‘Come on, Dean’s about to start practice without us.’
Ginny nodded, feeling a sudden warmth that made her think of Harry for a moment before she followed Natalie towards the pitch. As they got outside, the bitter cold seeped into every fold of clothing they wore. Ginny wrapped her arms tightly around her body and pulled her bag closer. They should not be practicing in such cold weather.
As they neared the changing rooms, Ginny could see some of the team flying in the wiping wind and worried about a collision at those speeds. She hurried after Natalie to change and then get out onto the pitch. This would be the first time Ginny had flown since the Slytherin match and she was not looking forward to having unsteady flying conditions.
Natalie got done before she did and Ginny laboured with the last of her robes and grabbed her broom only to find the weather had taken a turn for the worse. The strong winds had been joined by hail and it was pelting her badly. She mounted her broom and kicked off, feeling the wind sway her hard to the left. She corrected the broom and was using more force than normal to keep it flying in the right direction.
It was hard to make out any of the other players, but she called out loudly and had the team circle in around her. The winds were deafening and she pointed her wand at her throat, repeating her call and a few figures slowly appeared in front of her.
Once the entire team was present, she went over her strategy for Hufflepuff, which was not greatly different from Slytherin. Both teams were good, but Hufflepuff had an excellent Keeper. She pulled Natalie to the side and said, ‘You’ve been brilliant all year, and I’m sure Dean and I are going to do our best to score like mad, but you’ve got to keep these posts covered.’
Natalie nodded. ‘I think I can handle it.’
Ginny smirked. ‘This won’t be as easy as the Slytherin match, they can score at will too, but they won’t cheat.’
Natalie nodded, but her over-confidence swayed slightly as Ginny challenged her with more information. Natalie flew off towards the goalposts and hovered near them. Ginny didn’t understand why Madame Pomfrey had not let her fly all those weeks, flying made her feel utterly weightless.
After a few shots on goal, Ginny flew to one side and called out various plays, trying to determine which formation would work best for them to try and out-manoeuvre a stalwart Keeper.
Ginny scanned the bleachers, seeing a smattering of students. Much to her surprise, she saw Luna with Hermione and Draco. She strained to see more, but they all seemed to be looking right at her. She started to fly forward when she felt something she’d hoped she wouldn’t ever feel again.
The sky was already very dark, but it became increasingly dark in a matter of moments and Ginny didn’t have to guess what was happening. Without turning around she pulled her wand out of her sleeve and called out clearly, ‘Expecto Patronum!’
Her silver horse came flying out of her wand and she easily wheeled her broom around to face the Patronus at the oncoming attack. She was thankful she hadn’t looked beforehand, she wasn’t certain she would have been so confident. In front of her stood a wall of black, if she didn’t know better, she would have thought it was the night sky. The Dementors seemed only slightly quailed by her attack and stood back a few paces before advancing again. She retreated a little and then stopped her Patronus. She took a deep breath before casting the spell again and feeling that same energy she’d felt on the train. Her Patronus came out of her wand with such force that the Dementors fell away like leaves off a tree.
She sat on her broom watching them fly away, a smile on her face when she felt a surge of the wind and her Patronus disappeared as she grabbed her broom with both hands, dropping her wand. She cursed under her breath and started to fly towards it when she heard Hermione’s voice call out shrilly, ‘Ginny!’
She knew she couldn’t catch her wand and could feel the press of Dementors close in around her again. She flew straight to Hermione, her hand reaching for her friend’s outstretched wand. She had almost forgotten Harry’s gift and kicked the broom into another gear and it raced towards the bleachers past Hermione.
She landed hard a few rows above Hermione, Luna and Draco and immediately knew why Madame Pomfrey had not wanted her to fly. Upon landing, her ankle buckled almost entirely. She grabbed onto the nearby bench to steady herself, falling over again. A strong pair of hands lifted her off the ground and the unwelcome voice of Draco’s admonished her, ‘That was the worst flying I’ve ever…’
She tried to stand, but was forced to lean back into his arms. ‘I can’t…’ She was breathless and her whole leg was in pain. She turned her eyes away from the bleachers to see the scene unfolding. The entire Quidditch team had seen the attack and had responded. Dean was at the forefront, she couldn’t quite make out his expression, but Natalie looked fearful.
The rest of the team were all trying to conjure anything to stop the Dementors from advancing, but nothing slowed them. The Dementors were making a line towards her and she struggled again to get up.
Draco lifted her onto her feet, but didn’t let go. ‘What? What are you bloody trying to do? You can’t conjure a Patronus now?’
Ginny shook her head, reaching for her broom. ‘I have to lead them away.’
His grip tightened. ‘Are you mad? They’ll kill you!’
Ginny turned her head, surprised. ‘What do you care?’
Draco’s face hardened. ‘Sod off.’ He set her down on the bench, unwilling to help her and said, ‘Hermione’s cleaning this up for you.’
Ginny turned to see Hermione’s silver otter flying fearlessly forward. Ginny could just make out her friend’s expression and it was almost peaceful. The strain of the spell wasn’t lost on Ginny and she could see Hermione’s hands tightening into fists as she tried to keep the Patronus going.
Ginny glared at Draco. ‘Give me your wand.’
‘What?’ he balked. He rolled his eyes at her and handed it to her. ‘Just remember this when you’re defaming me later.’
She nodded and called out, ‘Expecto Patronum!’
The silver horse easily dwarfed the otter and it flew past Hermione and towards the Dementors. Although she didn’t feel as confident now, there was a reserve of energy she was tapping into and the Dementors wheeled away from the bleachers, focusing on the individual members of the Gryffindor team.
Dean was darting away from the Dementors, while Natalie seemed to be stuck in the air, frozen. Dean waved wildly at her as the rest of the team scattered and flew towards where Ginny was. As they landed, everyone seemed fine, but all of them had eyes as wide as saucers, staring in disbelief at the scene in front of them.
Dean came hurtling at Natalie, trying to wake her from her frozen state. Ginny couldn’t intervene; she knew she had to keep the Patronus going for as long as possible. Hermione had turned, her expression thankful, when Ginny conjured her much larger Patronus. Draco was standing behind her, saying nothing. Hermione took a step back and then called something out that Ginny couldn’t hear. She caught something in her hand and Ginny realised it was her wand. She didn’t dare lower Draco’s wand, but would have felt more comfortable with her own wand.
Her eyes had been diverted from the pitch long enough to not see another Patronus come barrelling into the air. The Dementors could not hold their line and they started to disappear into the night, but not without making one last effort towards the bleachers. Dean was within reach of Natalie, but it was too late. One Dementor started to attack Dean, waking Natalie from her fear. Ginny moved her wand to where Dean was, but he’d already blacked out and was falling fast to the pitch below. Natalie grabbed at him, but he was too heavy and they both slammed into the pitch below.
Ginny sucked in a gasp and tried to move to the edge near Hermione. Her leg gave out as she lurched forward and fell across the seats. A tired, but shaking voice stated, ‘Where are you going now? They’re probably dead anyway.’
Ginny turned, her eyes blazing, but didn’t reply as Hermione responded, ‘Oh, shut up, Malfoy. They are not. Ginny, they’re fine…well, they’ll be okay…are you okay?’
Hermione gripped Ginny’s arm and helped her to sit up. She sat down next to Ginny and let her lean against her. Ginny shook her head, feeling tears threatening. ‘Harry’s going to kill me.’
Hermione laughed and patted her hand affably. ‘I would have thought that’d be the furthest thing from your mind right now.’
Ginny shook her head. ‘You would think…but…’
She suddenly felt really tired. She leaned back more heavily and could feel Hermione tense. ‘Are you okay? You seemed fine…though I don’t know how you held that Patronus for so long!’
Draco came up behind them. ‘Looks like they’re gone now, though I think I see that oaf Hagrid coming this way…’
‘Shut up!’ Hermione barked. ‘I am so tired of your negative attitude.’
She muttered something under her breath that Ginny didn’t hear, but she was too busy watching the world around them swim and the colours blend into one to pay any more attention. Hermione shook her gently. ‘Ginny, I need you to stay with us for a few more minutes…here.’ She placed Ginny’s wand in her hand. ‘Hold onto this. Though I doubt you can conjure a Patronus now.’
Ginny nodded into Hermione’s shoulder and shut her eyes, feeling the weight of the power she’d used get the better of her. She woke up some time later and was surprised to see she’d been placed under the covers of ‘her’ bed in the hospital wing. Her leg was tightly bandaged and the room was dimly lit.
She blinked a few times and felt someone squeeze her hand gently. ‘I got your message…came as soon as I could.’
She didn’t need to look to know who it was and smiled. She croaked weakly, ‘Sorry…’
Harry leaned over and brushed her hair away from her face, kissing her on the forehead. ‘Just don’t scare me like that again…I can’t handle it.’
She shook her head and tried to sit up, but Harry placed a hand on her shoulder. ‘You can’t sit still for five minutes, can you?’
She laughed softly, and started to reply when Harry brought a cool glass of water to her. She took it, but her hands were shaking. He sighed and sat down on her bed, bringing the glass to her lips. She sipped it slowly and leaned against him, feeling a sense of peace fall over her. He rubbed her back gently and helped her to a more upright position, setting the glass back on the table.
They sat there for a few moments before Ginny finally felt well and awake enough to tell him what had happened. She pulled away from him slightly to look him in the eye. ‘I’m not sure I patched things up with Hermione like you asked…’
He nodded. ‘I know…she’s cross with me too, but that didn’t stop her from sending me a Patronus about what happened.’
Ginny gripped his arm tightly. ‘There were more…and more than on the train…and they were coming right at us…’
‘All of you or just you?’ Harry asked, worry in his voice.
‘I’m not sure…Hermione…’ Ginny sighed. ‘She thinks they might be after something, not someone.’
Harry gave her a curious look. ‘But we knew that before, didn’t we?’
Ginny exhaled slowly. ‘The locket, she thinks they’re after it.’
‘You can’t be serious!’ Harry exclaimed. ‘What would they do with it?’
‘You told me yourself it could be bound by any emotion, why not hate?’ Ginny ventured.
Harry wrapped an arm around her waist, pulling her towards him. ‘Ginny, I really don’t think they’re after your locket. That’s ludicrous.’
She narrowed her eyes. ‘Are you calling me crazy? They were coming straight at me.’
He arched an eyebrow. ‘I knew it! I knew they were after you!’
Ginny crossed her arms, not seeing the amusement that Harry saw. He rested a hand on her arm and smiled. ‘Sorry, I just…I know you thought…’
‘Harry, I am wearing the locket…it is entirely possible they were after it, and not me,’ she stated.
Before he could respond, Madame Pomfrey bustled around the corner, wagging her finger at Harry. ‘I thought I told you not to wake her! Mr. Potter, I’m really surprised at you.’
He tried to explain, but Ginny spoke over him, ‘No, I woke up on my own, Madame Pomfrey…and I was fit to fly! So I shouldn’t be in trouble for this.’
Madame Pomfrey chuckled. ‘No, Ms. Weasley, you are in no trouble, though you’ve splintered your leg into a thousand pieces with that landing. You passed out from the pain, not the Dementor attack. Though, that Patronus of yours…I could see it from here!’
Ginny flushed and then touched her leg gingerly. It didn’t feel any differently. As she did this, she realised she had been changed into more comfortable clothes and was rather thankful her pyjamas were covering all of her. She had the feeling someone, other than Harry, was watching her intently. She could feel his eyes on her, but they were more comforting than bothersome.
Madame Pomfrey set a glass on the table and said, ‘Drink this; it’ll make you feel better, and possibly help you sleep.’
Ginny grimaced and sized the bottle up. Madame Pomfrey turned to Harry, ignoring Ginny and stated, ‘And you, you can stay for a little while longer, but I don’t want any funny business, am I making myself clear?’
Harry nodded earnestly. ‘Yes, no funny business at all. I just want to…be here.’
Madame Pomfrey rolled her eyes and turned back to Ginny. ‘You - stop staring at it and drink it. It isn’t Fire Whiskey.’
Ginny nodded slowly, reaching a hand out to the glass. Harry pulled her close and asked quietly, ‘Do you want me to get you something to eat? Winky’s downstairs, I’m sure she’ll be happy to oblige…if not, I can call Kreacher over.’
Ginny shook her head. ‘I think I’m okay.’
‘That isn’t what I asked,’ Harry replied, slightly irritated.
She poked him. ‘Don’t get cross with me, Harry, I’m sick.’
He laughed, his irritation melting away. ‘You’re not sick; you fell off your broom.’
She smirked. ‘If not for that crazy contraption, I would have gotten caught too, so I guess I owe you for that.’
He kissed the side of her head. ‘I’ll put it on your tab.’
He pulled away slowly, getting up. ‘I’ll see what I can find. Drink that, it’ll make you feel better.’
She narrowed her eyes and said in an undertone, ‘You’re not the boss of me.’
He stopped and stared at her. ‘One of us has to be and since you can’t keep both of your legs working at the same time, we’ll have to rely on me.’
She shook her head and watched as he walked out of the hospital wing. This was the first chance she had to look around the hospital wing. A bed, not too far from hers was occupied. The figure sat up and laughed. It was Dean.
‘Jeez, Ginny, Harry won’t let you out of his sight!’ Dean continued to laugh as he spoke.
Ginny turned towards him, lifting the glass off of the nearby table. She smiled. ‘Yeah, he’s worried.’
Dean sat up on his elbows, trying to turn to look at Ginny. She noticed the bandages around his waist. ‘What happened to you?’
Her eyes went wide as she saw the beginnings of a gash across his back. She balked and repeated, more strained, ‘What happened to you?’
He shrugged and grinned at her. ‘I just fell. Natalie caught me, but we hit the side of the bleachers. She’s okay; they sent her back to the tower. Madame Pomfrey asked me to stay to get this to heal.’
He sat up more straight and gently pulled at the binding. Ginny looked at him, horrified. ‘What are you doing? You need to keep those on!’
Dean chuckled. ‘I’m not bleeding, calm down.’
The cuts were just scars now and he seemed fine. He got up and walked over to her bed. ‘See, nothing, just slight scars. Sounds like you got much worse.’
Ginny nodded, pointing to her leg. ‘You know me, if it’s worth doing, it’s worth doing right.’
He took another step closer, his eyes on her, boring a hole through her. She shifted uncomfortably and moved the glass from one hand to the other. It didn’t smell appetising in the least. Another step closer and he said, ‘You know, despite all that, you’re still…I mean, you look…good.’
Ginny stared at the floor for a moment before bringing her eyes to his. His eyes were searing and she shook her head. ‘Dean…Dean…I like you, but I’m with Harry…please don’t look at me like that.’
He started, as if out of a dream and flushed. ‘Right, I know…’ He shook his head and stepped back. ‘I’m sorry; that was too forward of me, wasn’t it?’
‘It was,’ Harry’s voice rung through the empty hospital wing.
Ginny felt herself breathing more easily now that he was back; it was like she had grown anxious, uncertain of Dean’s reaction. She knew he wouldn’t try anything with Harry there. He had walked, almost silently; up to the bed Dean had been in, holding a bowl with a plate on top of it and a steaming mug. His eyes were trained on Dean. Ginny pursed her lips together, uncertain whether she should say anything.
Harry took another step forward, his eyes narrowing further. Dean shuffled back to his bed, grabbing his Quidditch robes. ‘I’m going to…I’ll see you later.’
He started past Harry, but the latter didn’t move and Dean was forced to move around him. Harry’s body was stiff, but as Dean retreated, he hurried over to Ginny’s bed, putting the things he was holding down before turning and following.
Ginny knew this wouldn’t lead to anything good. ‘Harry!’
But he was already out the door. After a few quiet minutes, and a longer time still of sipping that horrible concoction, Harry came back in, looking no less furious. She gave him a hard look. ‘You didn’t have to do anything further…I think he got the message…’
She felt irritated that she had to say it, but Harry glared at her. ‘Did you encourage this?’
‘What?’ she practically yelled. ‘Are you mad? Didn’t you hear what I said to him?’
He nodded, crossing his arms and glaring at the door. ‘Yes, I did…but it didn’t seem like he was trying this for the first time.’
‘No,’ she relented. ‘But I did not encourage it.’
Harry looked like he was going to ream her out and she stated flatly, ‘You didn’t hurt him more, did you? I am not going to win any more matches without him.’
He rolled his eyes, smirking at her. ‘No, I made myself very clear about you.’
She shook her head. ‘Harry, I wish you hadn’t…’
‘No,’ he stated fiercely. ‘No, Ginny, I’m not going to have him or anyone else putting the ‘moves’ on you when I’m around or even if I’m not. I’m not…the ‘jealous’ type, but walking around without your shirt in front of my girlfriend! That I’m not going to tolerate!’
Ginny finished the last of the bitter tasting drink and placed the glass down. The look on Harry’s face told her she wasn’t going to win any arguments with him. ‘If you must.’
He grinned, his body language calming. He sat down on the bed, placing his hands lightly on her ankles. ‘I must…because…you’re…you’re mine…and I don’t want anyone being confused about that.’
She shook her head and said, ‘Do let me know when I get to wear a sign that says ‘Property of Harry Potter.’ We’ll need to co-ordinate that with the rest of my clothes.’
He grinned at her and leaned forward kissing her softly. ‘I promise, I’ll get it in colours that compliment you.’
She pushed him playfully on the chest. ‘Alright…do you feel better now?’
He continued to smile at her and nodded. ‘You’re not looking much better though…do you need a numbing spell or something?’
She shook her head. ‘I’m just tired…’
He nodded and got up, sitting next to her at the head of the bed. ‘I’ll make sure nothing bothers you.’ As if just realising that he’d left to get food, he pointed to the table and said, ‘I brought some tea and some snacks, in case you’re hungry.’
She leaned her head on his shoulder. ‘Maybe later.’
He stretched his legs out across the bed over the covers, making himself comfortable. She rested her hands on his chest, her head on his shoulder and let her mind and body relax in his embrace.